Page 66 of Backward Motion

Sam blinked. “What? Wow. Connor, that’s... how do you feel?”

“Relieved. Stupid. Angry for waiting this long.”

Sam was flooded with an overwhelming tenderness. “I’m so proud of you.”

“I don’t think I could’ve done it if it weren’t for you. I mean, I didn’t do it because of you—but I think the courage came from you.”

The warmth in Sam’s cheeks spread to a full blush. “No.” He shook his head. “It was yours.”

“Him getting so sick, being so close to losing him...” Connor’s breath caught. “I realized that if he died not knowing, a part of me would always have kept that secret. Because I’d never been honest with him. And I couldn’t bear having to live with that for the rest of my life.”

“Connor,” Sam whispered.

Connor stared at him, his eyes shining. “Sam, you know I’m crazy about you. Nothing’s changed there.”

Sam couldn’t fight the smile that swallowed his face. “You’re pretty hard to shake yourself.”

Connor lurched forward to embrace him but stopped as he remembered the coat of motor oil. “Let me go wash this off. I want to put my hands on you and not leave marks,” he murmured, making a dash for the office door.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Once Connor had washed the motor oil from his hands, he emerged from the dinky office bathroom and scooped Sam into a fierce embrace. Sam wrapped his arms around Connor’s neck and kissed him like a sailor rescued at sea. Connor melted at the taste of him, so sure before that morning that he’d lost Sam for good. He’d stood there by the van like an idiot, not quite believing the words coming out of Sam’s mouth. Good things rarely happened to Connor, and now it was as though all his Christmases had come at once.

“Thought I’d made the biggest mistake of my life,” he murmured between kisses, holding Sam close.

“No, don’t. Connor... I missed you so much.” Sam’s breath was hot and electric, and the solid press of his body made Connor’s skin burn.

It soon became apparent from the urgent way they were rubbing against each other that kissing wouldn’t be enough. “Will you... can we?” Sam looked at him pleadingly, and Connor couldn’t think of anything he wanted more.

“Not here. Too many weird family vibes.”

Sam burst out laughing. “Oh my God, of course not! I’m pretty sure you can see right through those blinds.”

“That’s one way to make things public.”

“I don’t think either of us is ready for that.”

Connor leaned in again and discovered how hard it was to kiss someone while beaming like a maniac. Sam took his hand and,possessing just enough sense to lock the office on their way out, they fled to Connor’s apartment.

They’d barely made it through the door before Connor dropped to his knees in front of Sam in the hallway, unable to wait a moment longer. He unfastened Sam’s pants and grazed his mouth over the bulge of Sam’s cock beneath the fabric of his briefs, pausing for permission. Sam let out a pitched moan. “Mmm, yes...”

Connor slid the briefs down over Sam’s thighs, and his cock sprang free, curving into the space between them. God, it was beautiful.Hewas beautiful, every last inch of him. Connor wrapped his lips around the cap, tongue darting along the slit as he drew Sam’s cock in and out of his mouth.

Sam made a soft humming sound then, laughing breathlessly, eased Connor back with a gentle nudge. “This won’t last long if you start with that,” he said, running his fingers through Connor’s hair. “Get up here.”

Connor got to his feet with a grin, and they continued to the bedroom, kissing and shrugging out of clothes as they went. They coiled naked together on top of the covers, tongues exploring mouths, their erections colliding impatiently, desperate to make up for lost time. It felt like years since he’d had Sam all to himself. Connor couldn’t decide whether to start by devouring his tight pink nipples or the sensitive skin behind his ear or simply head straight for the prize between his legs.

Then, out of nowhere, Connor was hit by a wave of exhaustion. Maybe it was the days of broken sleep or having gone through the full spectrum of emotional turmoil—crushing lows to soaring highs. His limbs filled with lead, and he stilled, resting his forehead on Sam’s chest. He felt raw and wobbly and didn’t want to think for himself anymore; he just wanted to be pulled close and held tight.

Sam seemed to pick up on the shift, and he gently rolled Connor onto his back.

“Do you want me to...?” His tone was hesitant, but there was a longing in his eyes. A burgeoning confidence.

Connor ran his palm across the smooth plane of Sam’s stomach and felt a shiver of arousal at the thought of the man inside him. “I want you, Sam.”

“Yeah?” Sam flashed him a nervous smile.

Connor nodded.